Crimping and folding machine



' 1. w. uooowm.

CRIMPING AND FOLDING MACHINE.

Patehted Sept. 21,1920.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3. I920.

ISHEETS SHEET 1- l-ll-lllllllll 1. w. HOODWIN.

CRIMPING AND FOLDING MACHINE.

' APPLICATION FILED MAR.3, 1920.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

y m M W 2% v 7, mummll i qlllllfl J0 Y i i l 3 .a" 1 mum O L 1 UP mm muPatented Sept. '21, 1920.

1 i r. A 1 Iv X H E AH IIN g a g x IFH II I l l l l I! l I ll] I l l fii lllllll'g v APPLICATION FILED MAR. 51, 1920.

v Patentedsefit. 21,1920.

' 7 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

J. W. HOODWIN.

CRIMPING AND FOLDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3. 1920.

Patented Sept, 21, 1920.

1 sHEgTs-sHEET 4.

J. W. HOODWIN.

CRIMPING AND FOLDING MACHINE.-

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3. 1920.

YSHEETQ-SHEET 5 Patented Sept. 21, 1920.

]..W. HOODWIN.

CHIMPING AND FOLDI NG MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3, 1920.

1 ,35 ,590, I Patented Sept: 21, 1920.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 6- 'J. W. HOODWIN.

CRIMPING AND FOLDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3. I920.

PatentedSept. 21,1920.

1 snzzrsgsuzn 1.

Fig. 5,

cnnvrrme AND roLDme vn -icHINE.

To all 10 7mm it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH W.YHOODWIN, a citizen of the United States,and a resident ofChicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,have/invented certain new and useful Improvements in Crimping andFolding Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved crimping and folding machine whichis particularly useful for crimping strips of paper previouslytransversely perforated, and then transversely folding the strip so thatthe small folded together compact sections of the strip may be readilydetached therefrom and from one another. v

In a machine of this class, crimping rolls are usually provided forlongitudinally crimping the previously transversely perforated strips,and thenthe crimping strips are subjected to transverse pressurepreferably under the application of heat, to compactly press togetherthe overlapping folds so that the strip can then be readily separatedinto compactly folded sections or pellets which can readily be insertedin small openings or pockets. My invention involves improved structureand operation for feeding paper blanks to the crimping rolls and fromthere to the pressure mechanism, an important object of my inventionbeing to provide improved and more efiicient means for compressing thecrimped' strips and for preventing distortion thereofj during thepressing operation. Another important object is to provide improvedmeans for discharging the crimped and folded strips from the machine.These, and other features of the invention are incorporated in astructure disclosed on the accompanying drawings, in which drawingsFigure l is a plan View of the machine,

Fig. 2 is a front elevationaljview,

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view, h

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional View on plane 4 4, Fig. 2,

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view on plane 14, Fig. 2 showing oneposition of the pressing and discharging mechanism,

Fig. 6 is a similar sectional view showing other positions ofthe'presserand discharge mechanism, 7 V

Fig. 7 is a sectional vlewon plane 77,

ig.8 is a plan'vie'w of the presser bar,

' ife;

Specification of Letterslatent. Patented Sept. 21,1920

Application filed March 3, 1920. Serial No 362,944 V v Fig. is asectional view on plane 9+9, Fig. 2, f I Fig.10 is a'sectional view onplane 10 -10,

If is a sectional view on plane 11 4 11, Fig. 2 and, i

HTED stares rarenrorr clj. I

JOSEPI-I'W. HOODWINQOF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

g- 12 S H Sectional view on plane 12 .12, I

Fig. 2. I v

Thesupporting framework for the machine parts comprises the top 'ortable part I 1, and the sides 2 and 3. ournaled in the sides is the maindrive shaft 4 shown as 'drivenby belt 5 engaging the pulley 6 at oneend. At the other end of the shaft is the. "sprocket wheel 7 connectedby the chain 8 .with the sprocket wheel 9 at the corresponding end of.the shaft 101which'supports the lower. crimping roll 11, this shaftbeing .13on the sides 2 and 3. Above the'sha ft '10 ournaled in thevertical extensions 12am the shaft ends of the upper crimping roll I j14 are journaled in bearing boxes 15 and 16 which are verticallyslidable in openings '17 and 18 in the extensions 12 and 13. Extendingbetween and secured to the upper ends-of the extensions12 and 13 isthetop plate 19 which supports the set screws;2O and 21 in register withthe openings 17and 18, these set screws bearing against springs I endsonthe shaft 28 which is journaledin the sides 2 and 3 parallel with thedrive 1' v shaft &. Themovement of this feed frame is controlled by cammechanism whichwill V be described in detail later. "A paperstrip s islaid on the shelf 24 in front of the projecting fingers and when thefeed frame is swung toward thecrimping rolls, the strip is fed into therolls and received by the crimping projections 0V to be carried therebythrough the rollers to the othersidethereof,

In order to prevent the crimpedstrips from traveling around with eitherone of thecrimpingrolls after the crimping operation, I guard wires 29and 30 are provided for the upper and lower crimping rolls respectively.The wires 29 are suspended from a bar 31 which extends between the sides2 and 3 be- ,hind the upper crimping roll, the free'ends The wiresextend through the circumferen' tial grooves 36 formed in the lowercrimping roll, and with these upper and lower guard wires thecrimpedstrip has no chance to follow one of the crimping rolls but isextracted therefrom by the guard wires and falls down along the lowerguard wires to be deposited on the table 1 behind the crimping rolls.

The shape of the crimped strip when it reaches the table is clearlyshOWn in 4, and it is now ready to be pressed transversely to have itsfolds compactly brought together.

The pressing mechanism and its operation are clearly shown in Figs. 4 to8. The side walls 2 and 3 are cut out ust above the table 1 to leave theslots 37 and 38 for receiving the bearing ends 39 and 40 of the presserbar 41. Between the bar and its bearing ends are the reduced cylindricalsections 42 and 43 for receiving the slotted upper ends of the arms 44and 45 extending upwardly from and secured to the shaft 46 which isournaled in the side walls 2 and 3. By suitable cam mechanism to bedescribed in detail later, these arms are swung to carry the presser baralong the top of the table with its bearing ends 39 and 40 engaging inthe slots 37 and 38. A short distance behind the inner ends of the slots37 and 38 v the table has the abutment step 47 between abutment step 47and then, as shown in Fig.

5, the: strip is compressed between the bar and the abutment to have itsfolds com-' pactly brought together into parallelism.

-. Unless provision is made for preventing,

the crimped strips when shifted along the table by the presser bar willtend to buckle and would not be compressed together accurately along thefolding lines established by the crimping process. I thereforeprovidea'guard or vertical presser plate 48 which is normally inposition to permit disbolts by the nuts 58.

charge of a crimped strip from the crimp ing rolls to the table andwhich is then brought into parallelism with but a distance away from thetable to provide a guide passageway for the crimped strip during itstravel toward the abutment step 47. The construction and operation ofthis plate 48 is best shown in Figs. 4 to 7. The plate along its rearedge is semi-circular and rests on top of'the step 47. Extending fromits ends a short distance in front of the center of curvature of thesemi-circular edge are the pins 49 and 50 which are engaged by thehooked front ends of the levers .51 and 52 which at their rear ends bearagainst the table. Each bar has the opening 53 therethrough throughwhich extends aheaded bolt 54, the bolts projecting through the openings55 through'the table and supporting the compression. springs 56 whichabut at their upper ends against the under side of the tableand at theirlower ends abut against washers 57 held to the The springs are al waysunder compression so that the bolts eX-ert downward pull on the levers51 and 52, which pull or pressure is conveyed to the pins 49 and50, suchpressure tending to swing the guard plate 48 downwardly. EX-

' tendingfrom the plate downwardly through the opening 59 of the tableis the arm 60 which at its lower end is pivoted to the bar 61 which isshifted longitudinally by cam mechanism to be described later. Normally,the bar is held to cause the plate 48 to be held upwardly in inclinedposition as shown in Fig. 4 to permit discharge of crimped strips to thetable. The bar 61 and its cam mechanism cooperate with the spring levers51 and 52 to swing the guard plate downwardly into parallelism with thetable shown in Fig. 5, after the crimped strip has been delivered to thetable. When the presser bar 41 presses the crimped strip against theabutment 47 the primarily inclined folds of the strip become vertical sothat the height of the strip increases. It is, however, desirable thatthe strip during the transverse pressing or compact folding operation beat all times in engagement with the table and with the plate 48 so as toprevent buckling and improper folding. This is permitted bythe springs56 whichtend to hold the plate 48 down inposition of engagement with thetops of the strip folds and to yield as the height of the strip isincreased during the compact folding operation. The crimped strip duringthe folding up and compressing operation is therefore always engaged onall four sides and it must necessarily fold accurately along the linesestablished by the crimping rolls.

I preferably apply heat to the crimping rolls and also to the tablesection along which the crimped strip travels during the folding andpressing operation, such-heatmg insuring retention .of the shape andform into which the strip is .cr1mped' and pressed. -As shown heatingnozzles 62 extend downwardly from a gas supply pipe 63 heat. The groovesalso serve to receive the guide tongues 67 and 68 on-the lower and uppersides of the presser bar 41. These tongues accurately guide the bar whentrav cling-between the table and the plate 48 and alsoyserve tostrengthen the bar andprevent its buckling.

Afterv folding up of the crimped strip under pressure and heat it isready to be discharged from the machine. The .discharg ing mechanism isbest shown-in Figs. 1, 3, 5

and 6. Ejector bars 69 are applied in the grooves and at vtheir rearends these ejector bars receive the rod 70 which extends through theslotted end of the Y frame-71 which at its lower end is secured totheshaft 72 extending between the side walls '1 and 2. Cam mechanism to bedescribed later swings this Y lever to cause reciprocation of theejector bars. Normally the front ends of.

the ejector bars are behind the abutment 47. After the presser bar41'has been returned after a pressing operation, the ejector bars 1 areshifted forwardlythrough the grooves 65 and carry the finished stripsforwardly and deposit them on the delivery apron 73.

The cam mechanisms heretofore referred to are clearly shown in Figs. 2and 3, and 9 to 12. In Fig. 9'is shown the-cam control for thefeedframe27. Extending from this frame is the link 74 whose longitudinal.slot' 7 5. receives the main drive shaft 4 01 which is secured the camdisk 76. This dlsk has the cam groove 77 which extends concentricallyforabout270 degrees and which for the remaining distance has the 'V-shapedpath 7 7f deflecting toward the center of the disk. In the cam grooverolls the cam roller 78 pivoted on thelink 74, and. as the cam diskrotates, the cam groovewill coiiperate with the cam roller toperiodically swing the f feedframe 27 V I v L 1;

The cam mechanism for 'asslstmg the spring levers 51 and "52incontrolling the operationof the guard plate 48 is shown in -Fig. 10.The bar 61 connected w th the plate has :the longitudinally extendingslot 7 9 near its lower end which receives the driving shaft 4 on whichis secured the. cam.

disk 80 which has the concentric cam surface 81 extending through about120 degrees.

Journaledon the inner'endfof the bar 61 the cam roller 82which-engageswith the cam. surface. -Theforce of the springs 56 actingthrough the levers 51 and 52 and the plate 48 hold the cam rolleragainst the cam surfacesof the cam 80. Whenever the roller engages with.the concentric surface 81 the plate .48 will be held in raised position.When the roller travels along the cam surface 88; toward the hub of the,cam the springlevers 51 and 52 will be free to swing the plate 48downwardly to the table] .In Fig.11 -is shown the cam mechanism forcontrolling the operation ofthe 'presser bar 41. On the arm 44 whichsupports one end ofzthe'presser .bar is the cam roller. 84

which engages in the cam groove85 in the disk 86 securedto the main:driveshaft'4. This camv groove :has the outer section 85' concentriclandr'of substantially degrees extent, and has the inner section 85 ofsub;

stantiallyHQO degrees extent and also con centric but of less radiusthanthat of the section 85?. i -Ther ends/of the sections 85 g and 85are. joined by thesections 85 and ln'Fig. 12Z-is shown the.cam-mechanism' forcontrolling the operation ofthe ejector bars. {Theframe'71 at intermediate parts receives the link 87 whose inner end hasthe longitudinal slot '88-receiving-the main drive shaft- 4. P At itsend the link hasthe cam; rolleri89 which travelsin the elliptical camgroove 90.whose inner section 9,0v isrconcen= tric and extendsaboutlSOdegrees. The

cam groove is formed in the disk 91 secured on the shaft 4. 9

Describing. now I the sequence. of -0per'a- 2 tion, let us begin withthe posltion'shown in:

Fig. 4. A. crimped strip has just been delivered tothetable andthe camroller 78:

isin the long concentric groove 77 of cam 76 so that there wlll be nofeeding of paper, to

the crimping rollers for some time. cam roller 82, however, is justabout to leave the Iconcentric cam-surface 81 to rapidly travel; overthe surface 88 and then to the.

concentric cam surface ofthe cam hub (Fig.

10). [The resulting movement of the bar 61.

will permit the spring levers 51-and .52 to swing downthc plate48 to'form the upper;

wallof theguidewayfor the crimped strip- While the cam. roller 82' is inengagement;

with r the concentriccam hub the. guard plate 1 1 ing thistimetthegroove section 85? of the- 48 stays in its horizontal position, anddurcam 86 is-effective to swing the arms44cand-y fold up the crimpedstrip against the abutmentl4'i'.v While the cam groove 85*, which isconcentric, is acting on r 45 to shift the presser bar 41, rearwardlyto3 and press it v,

the cam roller 84, the pres ser ba'r'41 remains; 1 in itsrear positionto; hold the papercome, pressed ,while. it is being heated. During;

mp s 9t the st ip. e ,p e e 8, a

80 becomes effective to draw down the bar .62 to raise the plate 48 andthe groove section 555 of the cam 86 becomes eifectivg to swing thelevers 44 and 45 to cause the presser bar 41 to be shifted outwardly.While the cam roller 84 is in the concentric groove section 85 and thecam roller 82 is engaged by the concentric surface 81 of the cam 80,ejector mechanism comes into operation to eject the finished strip. Thecam roller 89 in the cam 91 leaves the concentric groove section 90"andis shifted to swing the frame 71 forwardly so that the ejector barsare shifted forwardly through the grooves and the finished strip isdischarged from the table onto the apron 73.

.After ejection of a finished'strip the cam 76 becomes effective tocause rearward swing of the feed frame and the blank paper strip placedon the shelf 24 will befed to the crimping rolls by the fingers 26 andafter crimping of the strip it is delivered to the table in positionshown in Fig. 4, whereafter the same operations are carried through asabove described. If desired, a cam 86 similar to cam 86 may beassociated with the arm 45 connected with the presser bar 41. These twocams equalize the pressure exerted by'the bar and the bar will travelsmoothly and will not bind. Engagement of the tongues 67 and 68 on thepresser bar in the groove of the table and the plate 48 serves anotheruseful purpose. It prevents the thin paper of the strip from entering orbeing caught between the presser bar and the table or theplate.

I thus produce a very eflicient machine for longitudinally crimping andtransversely folding under pressure strips of paper previouslytransversely perforated so that the finished product can be readilydivided into' pellets by breaking at the perforation line. There is nodanger anywhere in the machine of the strip becoming caught or torn, andon account of the yielding guard plate 48 which in cooperation with thetable always keeps the 'cr'imped strip from displacing vertically, thereis no chance for buckling and the crimped strips must be permanentlyfolded along'the lines determined by'the crimping prooess.- Changes andmodifica tions are no doubt possible which would still come withinthescope of-the invention and I do not therefore desire to be limited toprecisely what I have shown and described.-

I claim as follows:

1. In a crimping and folding machine, the combination of a supportingtable,

. crimping rolls above said table, means for feeding paper strips to thecrimping rolls, said rolls delivering the crimped stripsto :nsss seosaid table,- an abutment on said table, a presser bar slidable on saidtable to press the crimped strips against said abutment to intimatelyfold them, and means for exertingve'rtical pressure on the strips duringfolding thereof.

2. In a crimping and folding machine the combination of a supportingtable, crimping rolls journaled above said table, means for feedingpaper strips to said crimping rolls, the crimped strips being deliveredfrom said rolls to said table, an abutment on said table, a presser barand means for reciprocating it on said table, said bar engaging with thecrimped strip to press it o I 7 0 against said abutment to permanentlybrlng together the folds thereof, a guard plate removably held abovesaid crimped strip and the path of said presser bar, said guard plateand table confining the crimped strip vertically to prevent bucklingthereof during compression thereof by the presser bar, and means forejecting the finished strip from said table.

3. In a crimping and folding machine, the combination of a supportingtable, crimping rolls journaled' above said table for crimping paperstrips and delivering them to said table, an abutment on said table, apresser bar and means for forcing said bar toward said abutment to transversely compress a crimped strip against said abutment, a guard plate,means for normally holding said guard plate raised from said table topermit feed thereto of a crimped strip,- means for lowering said plateinto parallelism with said table over a crimped strip after feed to thetable of the strip, said plate and. table forming a confining passagewayfor the strip through which the bar travels to effect compressionthereof, and means for discharging a compressed strip from said table.

4. In a crimping and folding machine the combination of a supportingtable, upper and lower crimping rolls journaled above said table, meansfor feeding paper strips to said crimping rolls to be longitudinallycrimpe'd; means for guiding crimped strips from said rolls to saidtable,

' an abutment on said table, a presser bar slidable; on said tabletoward and away from said abutment, means for controlling thereciprocation of said bar, a removable guard plate abovethe tableforming a passageway therewith through which a crimped strip is ,shiftedby the presser bar to be eventually compressed between said bar andcable on said table, an abutment on said table, a removable guard.platea distance above and parallel with said table to leave apassageway for a crimped paper strip and-said bar, s'aid'bar eventuallycompresscrimping rolls to be crimped thereby, means for guiding crimpedstrips from said rolls to said table, a guard plate normally raised topermit discharge of a crimped strip to the table from the rolls, meansfor lowering said plate into parallelism with but av short distanceabove said table to form an upper retaining wall for the crimped strip,an abutment between the table and the end of said plate, a presser barmounted on said table, means for shifting said bar between said tableand plate to engage with and compress the crimped strip against saidabutment, and means for discharging the compressed strip from saidtable.

7. In a crimping and folding machine, the combination of a supportingtable, means for discharging a crimped strip to said table, a guardplate over said table forming a passageway therewith for the crimpedstrip, an abutment at the end of said passageway, a presser bar mountedon said table, means for shifting said bar into said passageway to-foldupsaid crimped strip and press it against said abutment, said guardplate being vertically yieldable during the compression operation, andmeans for discharging the compressed strip from the plate.

8. In a crimping and folding machine, the combination of a supportingtable, crimping rolls for crimping paper strips, means for guidingcrimped strips from said rolls to said table, an abutment ridge on saidtable. a guard plate hinged on said abutment plate and normally raisedto permit said table to receive a crimped strip, means for swinging theplate into parallelism with said table to form a passageway therewith, apresser bar guided on said table, means for shifting said pressenbarinto said passageway to engage with and to compress the crimped stripsagainst said abutment, said plate beingvertically yieldable to permitincrease in height of said crimped strips during compact folding thereofagainst said abutment, and ejector arms for ejecting a compressed stripfrom said table.

9. In a crimping and folding machine, the

and'reciprocable across said table, ariabutment at the end of said slotsin front ,of'.

whicha crimped strip is depositedf-rom the crimping rolls, said presserbar upon its inward travel engaging with the crimped v strip andcompactly folding it together and compressing it transversely againstsaid abutment, and means for exerting vertical pressure on the stripsduring such transverse compression and folding thereof; 10. In [acrimping and folding machine, the combination of a supportingtable,exten sion walls at the sides of said table, crimp ing rolls journaledin said extension walls above said table, means for feeding said paperstrips to saidcrimping rolls, means for guiding a crimped strip fromsaid rolls to 'sai'd table,,a guard .fplatenormally raised over thetable where a crimped stripjis -deposited, fmean's for swinging .saidplate downwardly into parallelism with anda distance above said table toform a passageway therewith, an abutment at the end of said passageway,guide slots at the bases of said side walls, a presser bar journaled atits ends in said guide slots, means for reciprocating said presser bar,engagement of said presser bar in said passageway causing it to receiveand to shift said crimped strip against said abutment, grooves in saidtable and plate,

and guide tongues on said bar. engaging with. said greoves. I

11. In a crimping and folding machine, the combination of a supportingtable, crimping rolls over said tabie for crimping paper strips anddelivering them-to saidtable, a guard plate-on said table over thesection thereof receiving the crimped strip, a spring hinge for saidplate tending to force it downwardly into parallelism with said tableover the stripreceived thereon, an

abutment at the hinged end of said plate, a.

presser bar shiftable on said table into and out of thepassageway'between said table and plate, bar when entering saidpassageway shifting said crimped strips toward and against the abutmentand pressing it to cause compact folding together thereof, and means forejecting a finished strip from said table.

12. In a crimping and folding machine, thecombination of crimping rollsfor crimping a paper strip, means for transversely compressing andcompactly folding together said strips after the crimpingoperation, and

means for confining said strip under vertical pressure during thefolding operation.

13. In a machinefor crimping and folding strips, the combination ofcrimping rolls for crimping the strips, upper and lower guide Wallsbetween which a crimped strip is received, an abutment wall at the endsof said guide Walls, a presser barand means for shifting it between saidguide walls to cause compression thereby of the crimped strip againstsaid abutment, one of said guide walls being yieldable to thereby permitincrease of thickness of strips during the compact folding thereof.

14:. In a crimping and foldin machine, the combination of a supportingtable, crimping rolls over said table for receiving and crimping saidpaper strips, a guard plate on said table, spring levers tending toswing said guard plate into parallelism with said table, cam mechanismfor holding said guard plate in raised position, means for guiding acrimped strip from said rolls to said table below said plate, said cammechanism and spring levers cooperating to swing said plate intoparallelism with the table above said strip, an abutment, a presser barguided on said table, and cam mechanism for shifting said presser baralong said table below said plate to engage with and to compress andcompactly fold said strip against said abutment.

15. In a crimpingaand folding machine,

the combination of a supporting table,

' strip from said rolls to said table, a guard plate hinged on saidtable and normally held raised above the tableto permit applicationthereon of a crimped strip, means for swinging said plate downwardlyinto parallelism with the table above said strip, a presser bar, saidtable and said plate having guide grooves, guide tongues on said presserbar engaging in said grooves to guide said bar, means for reciprocatingsaid bar toward and away from said strip, inward travel of said barcausing engagement thereof with said strip and compression thereof tocompact form, ejector arms slidable in said grooves, and means forshifting said bars to discharge the compressed strip from said table.

In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name this 1st day of March,A. D., 1920.

JOSEPH w. Ho'oDwiN.

